YO! appoints new CFO

Xenia Walters was previously CFO for the multinational professional services company SDL.

Last week, it was reported that that major sushi chain YO! had drafted in the former head of Home Retail Group John Walden as its chairman.

In a press release on Thursday, the multi-brand Japanese and Asian food group writes that Xenia Walters has been appointed as CFO and an executive director of the board.

She starts on the 8th of March.

Walters has worked for 20 years in a variety of senior roles with international groups. Most recently she held the role of group CFO of SDL PLC, the listed professional services provider, where she helped drive the transformation and merger with RWS Holdings, creating the world’s leading language service and technology group with a market capitalisation of GBP 2.4 billion.

YO! CEO Richard Hodgson said that Walters has an impressive track record of helping businesses “navigate growth” as well as managing teams and “developing best practice processes in complex multinational organisations”.

“These factors, together with her experience in driving transformational change, will make her an invaluable member of the team as we continue to execute on our diversification strategy,” he added.